Raiders host UIC, national ESPN2 audience on Friday night

Friday, February 14

Dayton, OH

9:00 PM

Wright State University

UIC

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Raiders host UIC, national ESPN2 audience on Friday night

2/13/2020 5:01:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Watch on ESPN2 Live Stats LISTEN ON WRZX 106.5 FM Game Notes Tickets

The Horizon League-leading Wright State men's basketball team hosts a pair of contests inside the Nutter Center this weekend in the Raiders' final two home games of the regular season, beginning on Friday night with a nationally televised game on ESPN2 against UIC slated for a 9 p.m. tipoff. The Raiders (21-5 overall, 11-2 HL) are undefeated in Horizon League play inside the Nutter Center, while UIC will come to town 112-14 overall and with a 7-6 Horizon League record. Friday night will also be a Black Out, with the first 4,000 fans receiving t-shirts.

WATCH ON ESPN2 | FOLLOW LIVE STATS | LISTEN ON WRZX 106.5 FM | GAME NOTES | TICKETS

Last time out, Wright State weathered a scoring run from Oakland midway through the second half on Saturday night, downing the visiting Golden Grizzlies 83-71 to remain in the top spot in the Horizon League standings. Coming out of the final media timeout of the night with 3:01 remaining, Oakland's Brad Brechting hit a pair of free throws to pull the visitors to within five points, but the Raiders scored the final seven points of the night to seal the victory. Wright State had four players finish with double figure scoring nights, led by Bill Wampler's 20 points. Wampler was 6-of-10 from the floor Saturday night, including four three's, while Tanner Holden added 18 points (6-of-8 shooting) - 14 of which came in the second half. Cole Gentry collected 16 points to go along with a game-high six assists and Loudon Love tallied the night's lone double-double with 16 points and 11 rebounds.

FLAMING HOT
Friday will be the 60th meeting all-time between Wright State and UIC, with the Raiders holding a slim 30-29 advantage despite the fact that UIC has won the last three meetings. Prior to the Flames' recent wins, Wright State had won five straight in the series and had a stretch from 2007-2012 where it won 11 of the 12 meetings. The first matchup came on Jan. 11, 1993, an 85-82 UIC victory in Chicago. Four Raiders scored in double figures in this season's first matchup, led by Bill Wampler's 16 points & Loudon Love's 15 points and 11 rebounds.

UIC-YOU
After starting Horizon League play 1-4, UIC has won six of its last eight HL games dating back to the first meeting with Wright State on Jan. 12. The Flames are coming off of a 13-point victory over Green Bay as three players finished in double figures, led by Marcus Ottey's 18 points. UIC is just 4-8 away from home this season, but all four road wins have come in Horizon League play. In conference-only games, the Flames lead the league in field goal percentage (.464), field goal percentage defense (.407), rebounds allowed (33.5), defensive rebounds collected (27.2) and blocked shots (5.0), while ranking second in 3-point field goal percentage defense (.278) and 3-point field goal percentage (.365) – a pair of categories Wright State leads both of. UIC senior Tarkus Ferguson is one of two active players in Division I basketball with at least 1,300 career points, 600 career rebounds and 500 career assists. Ferguson entered his senior year fourth in program history with 479 career assists and now sits third in program history with 592 assists.

RAIDING THE BOARDS
With his 11 rebounds against Oakland on Feb. 8, Loudon Love now has 828 career rebounds, which is tied for second on the Wright State all-time rebounding list with Sean Hammonds (1989-94). Following his next rebound, Love will only be looking up at Bill Edwards (1989-93), who sits atop the Raider record book with 907 career rebounds.

Love is averaging 9.2 rebounds per game and is on pace to break the Wright State career rebounds per game average record, currently held by Rondey Robinson (1987-89) who had an 8.7 rebounds per game career average. Love's 341 rebounds in his initial campaign in 2017-18 is the most in a single season in Wright State history. Love began the 2019-20 season in seventh place on the Wright State career rebounding list, moving up throughout the season.

ON A NATIONAL SCALE
Entering this weekend's actions, Wright State is third nationally among NCAA Division I programs in total rebounds with 1,056 total boards. The Raiders are averaging 40.62 rebounds per game, a mark that is No. 10 nationally. Their 12.62 offensive rebounds per game average is No. 26 nationally and the 28.00 defensive rebounds is 33rd in the country. Individually, Loudon Love's 3.95 offensive rebounds per game average is No. 8 in the country. The Raiders are No. 4 nationally in scoring offense (81.8). Wright State's 590 free throw attempts are the ninth-most in the NCAA this season, while the 397 free throws made are the 25th-most nationally. Overall, Wright State is inside the top 50 in 13 different statistical categories as a team (four inside the Top 10) and is in the Top 100 nationally in 21 statistical categories.

AP TOP 25 VOTE
Wright State received votes in the latest edition of The Associated Press college basketball poll, announced on Monday afternoon. The votes mark the first time in program history that Wright State has received votes in the weekly AP rankings.

ONE OF THE FEW
The Raiders are one of 14 remaining teams in the country with 21 or more victories entering Thursday's action and one of eight teams to have yet to lose a game by double-digits this season, along with Baylor, San Diego State, Dayton, Duke, Kentucky, Northern Iowa and Yale. Wright State has lost by a combined 17 points in its five losses this season (to Kent State, La Salle, Indiana State, UIC, Green Bay). The margins of the first two losses were a combined three points (72-71 vs. Kent State; 72-70 vs. La Salle) before the overtime loss to Indiana State, a four-point loss at UIC and a three-point setback at Green Bay.